1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the production of oil and gas, and particularly to an integrated system and method for producing oil and gas, where crude oil is separated into oil, natural gas and effluent water at a plurality of remote locations, and where each component is delivered to a centralized location.
2. Description of the Related Art
Throughout the years, different strategies have been adapted to increase the production of crude oil. An example of one such strategy is to build and maintain centralized gathering centers including booster stations and effluent water handling facilities to produce useable oil, natural gas and water. Such strategies, however, face a myriad of technical challenges and other associated difficulties that can make them very costly.
Prior strategies, for example, have failed to efficiently produce crude oil from oil wells having different characteristics (e.g. high pressure vs. low pressure, high gas content vs. low gas content, high water cut vs. low water cut, etc). Another challenge relates to the distance between the centralized gathering center and the various oil wells. For example, since oil wells typically are not positioned in close proximity to the centralized gathering center, flow line congestion can often result. Also, the relatively long distances between the remote oil wells and the centralized gathering center, as well as the relatively low pressure in the respective oil wells, require the use and operation of multiple electrical submersible pumps to maintain a constant flow of oil. Further, a large amount of heat energy and pressure is typically wasted due to the large distances that the oil needs to travel from each of the oil wells to the centralized gathering center.
Other problems associated with prior strategies involving a centralized gathering center relate to inefficient treatment of various gases and the effluent water produced during the extraction of crude oil. For example, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), a highly corrosive gas associated with the production of crude oil can adversely affect ones' health and safety, as well as the environment. These gases must be removed from the system and directed to appropriate facilities. Further, it is to be noted that the effluent water produced, in addition to the gases, can take up valuable space within the pipeline(s), thus, not only reducing the amount of crude oil that can be produced, but also adversely affecting the smooth operation of the centralized gathering center; thereby requiring additional resources to enhance the quality and efficiency of crude oil production.
Shutting down a centralized gathering center for planned, as well as unplanned, maintenance in the past has been typically very labor intensive and cost intensive. Further, taking the centralized gathering center offline for maintenance can cause substantial production losses. Security and land requirements for current and future sites can also raise significant issues since centralized gathering center(s) normally take up a significant amount of space.
Thus, a dynamic centralized oil and natural gas grid production system solving the aforementioned problems is desired.